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An Honorable Title: CSIET 22nd Art Cover Winner

Samiya holding up her artwork

By Samiya Amin (YES 2023-2024, Bangladesh, placed by PAX in Appleton, Wisconsin)

I am Samiya, an exchange student from Bangladesh who was placed in Wisconsin. Since the start of my exchange year, I wanted to try out new activities and take a chance on many new things I hadn’t done before. So, I participated in the CSIET 22nd Art Cover Contest because I’m deeply in love with art and this was the perfect opportunity to showcase my feelings. I ended up winning the contest! I am really proud to hold the honorable title “CSIET 22nd Art Cover Contest Winner”. This achievement truly motivated me to push boundaries in my artistic journey and keep going forward with my dreams.

Image of Samiya's artwork representing many cultures

I would describe my artwork for the competition as a personal view of the exchange year. I was inspired by the amazing things many exchange students experienced during their year and my artwork was just a glimpse of it. In my piece, I brought up the feeling of unity among nations during these international exchange programs because it was so amazing to meet people from diverse backgrounds and cultures! Most of my artwork during the exchange year was inspired by experiences I shared with my international exchange friends such as making our traditional food, wearing our cultural clothing, doing presentations together, and holding out our passports in front of our eyes right after landing in the USA.

In conclusion, my art isn’t just artwork, it’s a precious memory that I’ll cherish for the rest of my life. I hope that future exchange students and even host families can see the amazing parts of an international exchange, because it is truly life changing. And, while art was a golden moment, having a family to care for me when I was so far away from home was a blessing in disguise.


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